Birthday Surprise
by AndAllThatMishigas
Summary: In honor of my own birthday, I got an idea for Bernice and Terry to celebrate hers. Set late s3.


**Birthday Surprise**

Today was different. And not in the way Bernice had expected it. She thought she'd be sad, thought she'd think of days gone by and all that she didn't have now and feel lost and empty. But it was just another Tuesday in Homicide, and there was work to be done. No use dwelling. And, actually, it wasn't quite a bad day at all. Her squad had gotten a good result, and she could finish paperwork in the morning.

There was a single knock on the door of the office she was using. She couldn't quite think of it as her office. This was Stanley's office, and she was just filling in. Her office was upstairs, where Terry Jarvis was sitting in her chair and neglecting her fish.

And speak of the devil, without waiting for permission to enter, Terry Jarvis himself waltzed right in through the door. He closed it behind him. "Terry," she greeted politely. It was never really a good sign when her boss—she supposed he was her boss now, strange as that was—came to speak with her at the end of the day.

"Bernice," he nodded in reply.

"What can I do for you?" she asked, putting her pen down.

A wry smile crossed his face. "Nothin'. Just came by to wish you a happy birthday."

Bernice's eyes went wide. "How do you know it's my birthday?"

"I pay attention," he answered cryptically.

She frowned. No one had ever acknowledged her birthday. She didn't like drawing attention to herself for anything except her work. Only Stanley Wolfe, who had always been a dear personal friend, ever wished her a happy birthday before. And he always did it without a fuss, leaving a card for her on her desk. Even today, when he was out on leave, she'd gotten an email from him first thing with a very simple birthday message. Terry had never done anything of the sort before. And she wasn't quite sure what to make of it now.

"I'm sure you've got plans, but in case you don't, I was wondering if I could take you out for a drink."

Her confusion reached an entirely new level now. What on earth was he playing at?! "I…I don't have any plans," she replied. And she didn't. This was her first birthday since Josh's death, so she had nothing waiting for her at home. All the rest of her family lived out of the area. And besides, it was a Tuesday, so what could she really plan to do?

"Then how about dinner?"

"You said a drink."

Terry let out a sharp bark of a laugh. "We can have whatever you want, Bernice. But it's your birthday, and I'd like to take you out."

And without any real excuse to say no, Bernice agreed to let Terry take her out to dinner at the pub down the road.

She had worried he'd be obnoxious, make comments and complaints that annoyed her, as usual. But that was the Terry of old, it seemed, and that perception of him hadn't quite matched up with this new Terry she worked with every day. Perhaps there was no old or new Terry Jarvis, but in working with him, Bernice had come to see how brilliant and kind and compassionate he was. He really did care about their cases, about the victims whose deaths they had to solve. He hated the paperwork and he hated the lowlife criminals they often came into contact with, but who didn't? Terry may have been rough around the edges, but he had a strange sort of charm that had wormed its way under her skin. More often than not, they worked extremely well together. He respected her in a way men like Terry never had in the past. She'd always gotten on with Stanley because he was gentle and kind and unthreatened by her ambition and authority. Terry wasn't like that. Never had been. But rather being unbothered by her position and her attitude towards the job, Terry seemed to somehow like her because of it, not in spite of it. Assuming he did actually like her. And judging by the fact that he was taking her out to dinner on her birthday—practically insisted on it, actually—she was getting the feeling that he might like her a bit.

Dinner was a simple affair. They had a couple beers apiece and dug in to greasy pub food at a booth in the corner. Terry ate chips off her plate and she dipped her croquettes into the gravy that dripped from his pie. They were strangely comfortable together, it seemed. Maybe that was just the beer. But Terry made her laugh. And she was actually having fun.

The bill came eventually and Terry paid for it in cash, not even letting her anywhere near offering to pay her own way. "I said I'd take you out for your birthday, so don't you dare."

It hadn't occurred to Bernice until this very moment that this had the appearance of…a date. She'd had a few beers and felt relaxed enough to say so. "Terry, is this a date?"

He flashed her that somewhat leering grin of his. "It's whatever you want it to be, Bernice. Birthday dinner from one colleague to another. First date. Whatever you want."

She wasn't quite sure what to say to that. She wasn't quite sure what she wanted it to be. But quite suddenly, there was something that she did want, something rather unexpected: Terry.

Terry was finishing the last few sips of his beer, watching her over his glass while he waited for her to respond. He didn't say a single word as she figured out what to say.

"Could you drive me home?"

The look of surprise in his eyes indicated that he had not expected her to say anything like that. "You have a few too many?" he asked warily.

"No," she replied with complete certainty.

His wide blue eyes crinkled with his beaming smile, the excitement he couldn't quite hide behind his usual gruff bravado. "Yeah, alright."

They drove to hers in silence. Terry knew the way. How, she wasn't quite sure. She wasn't going to ask. But she wanted him to come home with her. It was her birthday. And they'd been having fun. And she wanted him.

Bernice felt her whole body begin to tingle with anticipation, wondering how this would go, if he really did want her the way he seemed to, if they'd really go through with it, or if she would take the coward's way out. She hadn't had nearly enough to drink to do anything too stupid. She would need to be brave. Assuming Terry was willing. She had a feeling he wouldn't press an advantage, not with her; this would only happen if Bernice herself made it happen.

When they arrived at her house, she opened the car door and got out before Terry could come around to open it for her. Not that she expected him to. But she didn't want him to think she expected him to. She walked with purpose up to the front door and got her keys out of her handbag. Terry's footsteps sounded on the gravel drive behind her.

"I've got some nice whiskey, if you want."

Terry grinned at her and nodded. "It's your birthday, Bernice. I'd love to have some if you want to share it."

"Yes, I think I do," she replied with a self-satisfied smirk. He was being quite the gentleman, and she almost wanted to push him to see how far that would go.

He followed her into the sitting room. She poured their glasses from the sideboard and handed him his before sitting on the sofa. He sat down beside her and clinked his glass to hers. "To your birthday."

Another little smile crossed her lips. "To my birthday. Quite the surprise."

Terry took a sip and sighed in approval at the flavor. "Is it?"

"Is what?" she asked, after taking a sip for herself.

"Is it a surprise?"

Bernice regarded him somewhat incredulously. "Well yes, I'd say that you taking me out for dinner is quite the surprise. And since we're on the subject, Terry, what are you playing at?"

He took another sip of whiskey, but kept his eyes trained on her face. He was making her wait before he answered. Perhaps he was searching for the words. But that wasn't really Terry's style. Not very measured, was Jarvis. Finally, he answered her. "You're quite interesting, Bernice."

"Interesting," she repeated flatly. She hadn't known what to expect, but that wasn't it.

"Yeah, interesting. We've known each other a long time. Not always got on, but I think we both respect each other on the job."

She hummed in agreement. He was correct, after all. Bernice may have thought him a class-A prick, but he was a good cop. Always had been.

Terry continued, "These last few months, working together, I've noticed things."

"And what sorts of things have you noticed?" she pressed.

"That you're a lot of fun."

Bernice had to laugh. "Well, I'm glad you think so. My sense of fun certainly isn't what I've ever been known for."

"All that other stuff I've known for a long time."

"Other stuff?"

"That you're brilliant and tough as nails. That no one's got more integrity on the job than you. You're organized and balanced and responsible. The perfect senior officer."

"Thank you," she replied with another smile. The cold tingling of anxiety had blossomed into warm tingling of desire. He could compliment her all day, and she'd love it. Though if he was going to make a move, she wished he'd do it.

Terry downed the rest of his whiskey and placed the empty glass on the coffee table. "And, of course, you're the sexiest woman I've ever known."

Bernice choked slightly. Terry leaned forward and took the glass out of her hand. "You…you can't be serious," she gasped.

He nodded slowly. "I've wanted you for a long time, Bernice. Just been waiting for the right time. Never seemed to be."

"I don't…I don't believe you," she stammered, suddenly realizing that this was progressing much quicker than she'd imagined. She hadn't actually believed it would even get this far. Yes, she wanted him. He had a rough, dirty, sexy quality about him that she quite fancied, made all the more desirable when he was being kind to her. But that he would want her? Well, that just seemed too far outside the realm of possibility.

A rather hungry grin spread over his face. "You want me to prove it to you?"

Bernice felt a shiver of want pass through her at the growling sound of his voice. "Yes, actually, I do," she answered, somewhat shocked at her own bravery.

The next thing Bernice knew, she was lying flat on her back on the sofa with Terry on top of her, his hand on her hip and his tongue in her mouth. She anchored his face to hers, moaning into the kiss and arching her back against him. His hand began a slow slide up the front of her blouse, and she whimpered at the first contact with her bare skin. She felt him smile against her lips as he continued on. Bernice could feel him getting hard against her thigh, and by then, she was entirely convinced that yes, he wanted her.

She indulged in the kiss a bit longer. He really was quite good at it. And Bernice could not remember the last time a man had wanted her so passionately and kissed her so well that she got dizzy. His wandering hand reached the edge of her bra and explored and massaged her over the fabric of it. It was then that Bernice pulled away from him with a gasp. "Up," she commanded breathlessly.

Immediately, Terry got off of her. His face was filled with apprehension, with worry that he'd gone too far and she'd kick him out.

She hauled herself up to stand before turning back to him. Bernice pursed her lips to keep from smiling too much. "I am a grown woman, and I will not be shagged on a sofa."

Terry laughed delightedly. "Atta girl, Bernice."

She grinned and grabbed his tie, pulling him up and leading him down the hall to her bedroom. He followed her willingly.

They returned to passionate kissing as hands got tangled in clothes. Bernice kicked off her shoes and was instantly more than a full head shorter than Terry. But she pulled him down to keep kissing her, which he certainly seemed keen to do. She loosened his tie and unbuttoned his shirt while he grabbed great rough handfuls of her bum.

Terry pulled away from her lips and moved his kisses down her jaw to begin nipping at her neck. She had the thought to tell him not to leave marks on her, but she didn't quite care. She could cover anything with makeup, and even if anyone did see anything, no one would ever believe she'd gotten them from Terry Jarvis. Bernice herself could quite believe it. But here she was, undressing him in her bedroom while he massaged her ass and pressed her hips up against his erection.

"Oh Jesus, Bernice, I wanna…" he groaned, moving to the other side of her neck.

"You want to what?" she asked him breathlessly.

He pulled back to look at her questioningly.

Bernice took the opportunity to kiss him again, to take his swollen bottom lip between her teeth before saying, "Tell me what you want to do, Terry."

His bright blue eyes were dark with lust, and a sparkle appeared in them as he got her meaning. "I want to get you naked and in that bed."

She trembled with desire. "What are you waiting for?" she challenged.

And with that, Terry very quickly undressed them both. Bernice didn't even have a chance to feel self-conscious about her body—a body that had not gotten much male attention in recent years, a body that she herself couldn't quite be proud of anymore—because as soon as Terry's clothes had come off, she couldn't stop staring at him. She had felt the hard plane of his chest under his shirt and felt the strength of his arms around her. But Bernice had not realized how bloody built he was. Perhaps no chiseled male model, but for a man his age, he was shockingly fit. And, of course, that wasn't even mentioning the revelation that was his proud erection.

"Good lord," she breathed.

He grinned with pride. "The good lord's got nothin' to do with it. This is all for you, Bernice. Now you get in that bed so I can give you a proper birthday present."

Perhaps if she wasn't quivering with arousal, Bernice might have taken offense to the coarse language. But in the moment, she loved it. She wanted him to tell her every filthy thing he was going to do to her. And she said so. "What sort of proper birthday present?"

Bernice got under the sheets of her bed and Terry followed her quickly. "You're gonna feel every inch of my cock inside you," he whispered in her ear, his hands finding her breasts and rolling her hardened nipples between his fingers. "And I'm gonna fuck you till you scream my name."

She gasped and whimpered, never in her life being so turned on as she was in that moment. And Bernice had never known Terry Jarvis to oversell; she had no doubt that he'd deliver on all the filthy, wonderful things he promised.

His mouth found its way down her chest, sucking hard and sinking his teeth into the curve of her breast. She was moaning and arching against him. Terry's hands traced the generous curves of her body and dipped between her legs. Bernice canted her hips to give him better access. He growled into her skin before pulling his face up to look at her. "You're wet for me already."

"Quit stalling," she demanded, her breath coming in pants now.

And with another of those naughty smiles of his, Terry settled himself between her legs and took his cock in hand to line up at her entrance. He teased her, spreading her wetness.

"Terry!" she whined.

But before she could give him any further instruction, Terry plunged inside her, hard and fast. Bernice felt all the wind knocked out of her, and some sort of visceral cry came from the back of her throat. But Terry thankfully knew what he was doing. He was still and waited for her to adjust; it had been a long time for her, and even if she was wet and ready, her body was quite unaccustomed to sex. He propped himself up on his elbows but leaned his head down to kiss her. The movement of his lips against hers was unhurried, full of a languid sort of passion. It was as though being inside her had quelled his urgency for the moment.

Bernice raised her knees up and shifted her hips. And slowly, Terry started to move inside her. And Christ, he was right, she could feel every inch of him and was practically prepared to scream his name already.

He pulled away from the kiss. "Good?" he asked, gently thrusting over and over.

"Harder," she begged.

Terry put weight on his knee so he could free up one hand to trace down the side of her body and lift her thigh, hitching her leg over his hip. He held her there with nearly bruising strength, and the speed and power of his thrusts increased.

A delicious tension was building and coiling deep in her belly. Every snap of his hips brushed against her and stroked her inner walls in the most intoxicating manner. Bernice watched where their bodies were joined, and once glance at Terry's face, glistening with sweat, let her know the he, too, could not take his eyes off the erotic sight of their coupling.

Bernice's high-pitched moans echoed through the room as she felt her body begin to flutter on the brink of release. "Yes, oh god, please," she cried.

"You feel so good, Bernice," he groaned, redoubling his efforts and leaning in closer to her to change the angle of his thrusts.

And then she shattered, screaming out his name just as he promised she would. Every bit of her body radiated with pleasure. Terry came inside her with a mighty roar and collapsed on top of her. Bernice could barely breathe and could not contemplate any thought as her extremities went numb after her climax.

A moment later, Terry rolled off her and onto his back, trying to catch his breath. Bernice's heart was thundering in her chest as she started to come back to consciousness. She turned to face him. "Jesus," she said, her voice a bit hoarse.

He chuckled and reached his arm out. "Come here," he requested.

Bernice obliged and snuggled against him. She rested her cheek on his chest and draped her arm over his belly. Their legs tangled together under the sheets that barely covered them. Terry's hand lazily traced her spine.

"Not a bad first date, eh?"

She frowned, thinking. "First date?"

"Well," he reasoned, "if you don't want anything more, that's fine. But once isn't enough for me, Bernice."

"You can't be serious," she scoffed. Though why she didn't believe him after the incredible sex they'd just had, she wasn't quite sure. Perhaps it was just habit.

"Serious as a heart attack," he replied. "I've been waiting a long time to find a way into your knickers."

"Charming."

"Don't pretend you didn't enjoy it," Terry said with a proud smirk.

Bernice lightly smacked his chest. "You're a pig."

"Maybe so," he conceded. "But there's a symphony thing next weekend I'd like to take you to."

"And then back into my knickers?" she teased, assuming that was his obvious aim, if his enthusiasm tonight was any indication of his future intentions.

"If you want. I'd like to take you to the symphony anyway."

Bernice fell silent, not quite knowing how to respond. The sex had been absolutely incredible, and it was shocking it had happened it all, but perhaps even more astounding was the thought that Terry Jarvis wanted to…date her?! He had called this a first date, after all. Maybe he meant it.

And that was certainly the biggest birthday surprise of all.


End file.
